Payroll taxes are going back up, after being trimmed for two years to help stimulate spending and boost the economy. For most workers, that means paychecks will shrink by 2 percent -- another $1,000 for someone earning $50,000 a year.

The wealthiest pay a lower share of their income, however, because the Social Security payroll tax applies only to the first $113,700 of earnings.

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Consumer confidence fell in December as Americans began to fear the higher taxes threatened by the fiscal cliff. Confidence had reached a five-year high in November, fueled by slowly declining unemployment and a steady housing rebound.

But the deal to avoid the cliff won't necessarily ignite a burst of spending. Taxes will still rise for nearly 80 percent of working Americans because of the higher Social Security tax rate.

Since the recession officially ended in June 2009, pay has barely kept up with inflation. The Social Security tax increase will cut paychecks by about 2 percent.

Several New Mexico residents said the cut in their paycheck stings. Dawn Birkla, a single mother, said it was already tough before the change.

"I dont qualify for any assistance because I make too much money, but then you're going to take 2 percent more from me? That's 2 percent more from me I won't have to help out my family," she said.

With the job market likely to remain tight, few companies have much incentive to hand out raises.

Thanks to record-low interest rates, consumers have whittled their debts to about 113 percent of their after-tax income. That's the lowest share since mid-2003, according to Haver Analytics. And the delinquency rate for users of bank credit cards is at an 18-year low, the American Bankers Association reported Thursday.

Yet that hardly means people are ready to reverse course and ramp up credit-card purchases. Most new spending would have to come from higher incomes, says Ellen Zentner, senior economist at Nomura Securities.

"We don't see the mindset of, 'Let's run up the credit card again,'" she says.